Israel Observes Holocaust Remembrance Day

There are somber observances in Israel as the nation observes Holocaust Remembrance Day.

The sirens wailed across Israel, and people everywhere observed two minutes of silence in memory of the six million Jews killed by the Nazis during World War II. Traffic came to a standstill, and Israelis got out of their cars and stood reverently on the streets. Radio and TV broadcasts focused on Holocaust Remembrance Day and places of entertainment were closed.

The main ceremony was at the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem.

Six torches were lit by Holocaust survivors, in memory of the six million victims, as a cantor chanted the mournful prayer God Full of Mercy.